By Andrea Blum, Heritage Newspapers
SOUTHGATE — All the hard work and planning apparently paid off
for the first annual Cruisin’ Downriver event.
"It couldn’t have gone better," Mayor Suzanne Hall
said.
"There were a number of events and the crowd was
fabulous."
A free concert featuring the Fantastics drew people to the
National City Bank building on Pennsylvania Road.
A "pit stop" for cruisers was set up at Southgate
Pontiac GMC Truck and featured a live broadcast by WWWW-FM (ALICE 106.7).
The site also had community promotions material and displays,
entertainment, giveaways and refreshments.
"The radio station broadcast drew a number of
people," Hall said.
According to Hall, there were no incidents during the event and
no tickets were issued.
She said she’s heard nothing but positive remarks about the
occasion.
"The cruise was great for the Downriver community,"
she said.
"So many people came from outside areas and it was a
really festive atmosphere."
"People were spread out everywhere, and there was so much
going on that I don’t think you could’ve covered it all," said Bill Andring
of the special events committee that coordinated the event.
"The pit stop went over pretty well."
The crowded street was a testament to the cruise’s popularity,
Andring said.
"There were some pretty good traffic jams."
An information center located at Detroit Edison offered
refreshments, a disc jockey and an "Arcs and Sparks" display vehicle
to warn children of the dangers of downed power lines.
National City Bank, Comcast Cable and Southgate Pontiac were
the three local sponsors working with the city.
Hall said she hopes to secure even more sponsors in the coming
years to defray the cost to the city.
"We’re going to sit down and put together a plan for next
year, and in terms of cost, we hope to have much of the cost underwritten by
sponsors," she said.
Ford Motor Co., title sponsor of the event, brought in racecars
and specialty vehicles at its Southgate dealership.
"It was good exposure for the businesses locally,"
said General Sales Manager Jim Jurcak.
"We had some car clubs out and the Make-a-Wish
Foundation’s ice cream vendor," he said.
The business’s parts department also was on hand selling
T-shirts and specialty items.
Business at Super Kmart on Fort Street peaked during the
cruise, according to General Manager Tim Hibner.
"Everything was excellent," Hibner said.
"There was a lot of traffic and excitement."
The
store offered refreshments outdoors along with a car show by the Downriver
Kruzers.
Hibner said the store would definitely want to be involved with
the event in the future.
"We didn’t have any problems," he said. "It was
good for everyone."
